Lightning Strikes the Heart
by NeahZoldyck13
Summary: It's been almost a month since Columbia and Albion started dating. But tensions and misunderstandings between them and their civilian personas threatens both them and their city. Can Alfred and Arthur overcome their issues in time to stop the Rogues and save their city? Rated for violence and language. Second in a series!


**A/N: I'm so sorry! I've been promising this story for at least three months, and it's only now getting written! I feel terrible...**

 **Also, even though this is the second story in a series, you don't HAVE to read the first one to understand this one. It would be helpful, but you can probably understand it without.**

 **But, let's do this anyway! I hope you guys will like this... I actually outlined! I'm so proud of myself! (I'm horrible...)**

 **So, without further ado, let's get into this!**

 **DISCLAIMER: I do not own Hetalia: Axis Powers in any way, shape or form. A boy can dream, though...**

* * *

"So, three on one?" Alfred whispered into his comms, crouching lower on the beam he was on. From his spot, he had a perfect view of the museum that was currently being robbed by the Rogues, a group of six villains that were more like powered petty thieves than true villains. That didn't make them any less dangerous, though, and Alfred was prepared for a tough fight.

"Unless you see another way to reliably take all six of them down," Albion's voice answered, heavily laced with sarcasm. He was currently crouched on a different beam on the other side of the room in order to cover all exits.

"Hey, we could call for backup," Alfred shot back, carefully adjusting his goggles in order to maximize his field of vision.

 _Watch it, kid. Don't wanna knock me out by accident, do you?_ Allen's voice cautioned. Alfred could imagine the spirit crossing his arms and glaring.

"They'll be too late. We have to do this alone, Columbia," Albion answered. Alfred nodded slightly before scanning the room again. All six of the Rogues were present tonight, which was both good and bad news. Good because they knew that none of them were going to launch a surprise attack. Bad because... well, all of them were there.

The Rogues actually had a pretty good mix of powers among their ranks. There were the two ranged fighters, Trickshot and Piper, who used guns and soundwaves to protect their teammates. Then there were the two melee fighters, Viper and Element, who were arguably the two most dangerous on the team, what with Viper's illusions and Element's ability to create weapons on the spot. And finally, Riptide and Gaea were midrange fighters who used either water or plants to disable and trap their combatants. A pretty well-balanced mix of powers and fighting styles which made for a much harder time defeating them.

"Okay. I can take Trickshot, Element, and Riptide? I think I'm better suited against their powers than you are," Alfred answered. Albion sighed through the comms before affirming Alfred's plan. Alfred pushed himself onto the balls of this feet and started counting down from five. Once he hit one, he jumped down and aimed a foot at Trickshot's head. He would have hit him, too, if it hadn't been for Gaea noticing him and yelling "Columbia's here!"

Trickshot turned and saw Alfred rocketing towards him. His eyes widened and he dived away, pulling out a Beretta and cocking it in one smooth motion. Alfred twisted around and landed on his hand, lashing out with his right leg and grinning when his foot connected with Trickshot's shooting arm. He yelped and tried to switch hands, but Alfred knocked his gun away before spinning to deliver a roundhouse kick to Riptide's ribcage. The arc of water he had summoned went wide, crashing into Trickshot and knocking him back into the wall. Alfred quickly dodged Element's daggers made of some kind of shiny metal before jumping over a half-recovered Riptide. Element managed to pull back in time to avoid hitting Riptide, and Alfred took that extra half second to sweep Element's legs out from under him. He then delivered a swift punch to Riptide's temple before punching Trickshot's nose when the sniper tried to shoot him with his newly-recovered Beretta. Element started to push himself up, but Alfred grabbed him and threw him into Trickshot before turning to check and see how Albion was doing.

Piper was already unconscious on the floor, his flute resting just beyond the reach of his limp fingers. Gaea's attacks seemed to be sloppier than they normally were, and she also seemed to be running out of steam. Viper was still going strong, though, and he seemed to be... was he _flirting_ with Albion?!

"Oh, Albi, darling! I knew you'd show up for our wonderful museum date!" Viper chirped, dodging one of Albion's magic blasts with seemingly no effort. Albion growled in annoyance and turned to block one of Gaea's thorny vines while also blasting through one of Viper's illusions. Alfred quickly checked to make sure that Element and Trickshot were both out before rushing over to help Albion.

"I've got Gaea! You take Viper!" Alfred yelled, slipping in between the plant master and his boyfriend. Alfred didn't register if Albion responded; he launched himself at Gaea instead, startling the female and causing her next attack to go wide. Alfred swept her legs out from under her just as Albion managed to tie Viper up with his magic. Viper pouted.

"Albi! I thought we had something!" he whined.

"Don't delude yourself," Albion snapped before stalking over to Alfred. "Are you okay, Columbia?"

"I'm fine. You?" Alfred asked. Albion opened his mouth to respond, but Detective Wang ran in before he could answer.

"Rogues! Surrender now!" Wang yelled. Viper smirked before slipping out of the bonds Albion had made. Gaea shot a vine towards the detective before scrambling over to Piper and hauling him up. Alfred lunged towards her, but she tied him and Albion back-to-back before grabbing the rest of her unconscious teammates and running.

"Hey!" Alfred yelled.

"Relax, darling, I've almost untied us," Albion murmured back, causing the vines to dissolve around them. Detective Wang picked himself up from the floor and groaned.

"Great. This is the third time this month the Rogues have gotten away. At least they didn't steal anything this time," Wang grumbled.

"Sorry about that, Detective," Alfred chuckled nervously. Wang waved him off, though, saying "Oh, it's not your fault. Gaea just took us all by surprise, that's all."

"Well, I hope the next time we see each other, it's because we've finally stopped the Rogues," Albion said.

"Likewise. Go rest up, you two. My team and I will take it from here," Detective Wang ordered.

"Come on. I think we need to have a bit of a chat," Albion murmured, dragging Alfred after him. Alfred sighed, pretty sure he knew what they were about to talk about.

Ten minutes and a lot of jumping and running later, Alfred and Albion found themselves on a secluded rooftop overlooking their city.

"Did I do something wrong? You're still acting slightly... distant and fidgety," Albion started, staring down at his hands instead of up at Alfred. Alfred's heart sank when Albion's words registered. He was being a terrible boyfriend.

"No! No, it's not you. It's just... I still have feelings for this other person I know, and I'm still trying to work through stuff. I don't feel like I'm being fair to you, though. I swear, I love you, but I still feel like... I'm cheating on you or something by still liking my classmate. Do you get it? I didn't mean to make you think you did anything wrong. You're amazing! It's just... me and my stupid feelings," Alfred babbled. Albion laughed slightly and Alfred could see a smile forming under his hood.

"I assure you, your feelings are far from stupid. And I get it, I do. Take all the time you need to sort things out. If you'd like me to keep my distance during that time, I can. Whatever helps you most," Albion answered.

"You don't have to! I still really want to be with you, Albion. Just... give me a couple days to talk to this person, yeah? It'll be fixed soon, I swear," Alfred yelped. Albion nodded in agreement, and Alfred pulled him forward into a kiss. When they pulled apart, both Alfred and Albion were smiling like dorks. Alfred opened his mouth to say something else when two high pitched beeps cut through the night air.

"Shall we pick this conversation up tomorrow night?" Albion offered, preparing to leave and refuel.

"Yep! See you, hon!" Alfred called before running towards his apartment. _Well, that went well, you love-struck idiot,_ Allen snarked.

 _Oh, shut up, you,_ Alfred shot back, slipping into his bedroom just as the last beep sounded and his Columbia uniform dissolved back into his goggles. Allen slipped out of the goggles and staggered towards the kitchen to grab some carrots while Alfred took a moment to inspect his bruised arms.

"Damn, Gaea's vines sure know how to pack a punch," he hissed. "Allen! I'm jumping in the shower, just an FYI so you don't freak out."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll be out here, trying not to die!" his spirit called back. Alfred rolled his eyes before heading to the shower, fully prepared for the sore, aching muscles he would have tomorrow no matter what he did to try and minimize the pain.

* * *

"Alfred! How are you this morning?" Arthur called, waving over the tall blonde as he walked into the lecture hall.

"Tired. Sore. Wondering why I'm still in this hell known as college," the American responded, sitting down next to Arthur. Arthur nodded in agreement, wondering how exactly he was going to phrase his question to Alfred.

"Artie? You okay? Something on your mind you wanna talk about?" Alfred asked, peering over at Arthur in concern. Arthur sighed before turning to face his seatmate.

"You've been getting more distant lately. Would you mind explaining why?" Alfred froze and turned to look at Arthur with a deer-in-the-headlights look.

"Ah. You've noticed that," Alfred mumbled, looking down at his hands. Arthur arched an eyebrow as if to say _'Obviously'_. "So... I think you know I have- had- have- a crush on you."

"Well, you weren't exactly subtle," Arthur huffed. Alfred cracked a wry grin before continuing.

"See, I'm... in a relationship with someone else, and I really, really love them, but I still have feelings for you. I'm just trying to... I don't know, get rid of those feelings? Get it?"

"Yes, I do. Good for you, Alfred. I'm really glad you found someone," Arthur replied, trying to ignore the little pang of... jealousy?... he felt after Alfred's explanation.

"Thanks so much for the support, Artie. You're the best friend I could ever ask for," Alfred beamed at him.

"Alfred! Toni's gone today! Mind if I sit with you?" Gilbert called, running over to Alfred and Arthur's table. Alfred glanced over at Arthur, and Arthur waved him off, saying "I'm fine, Alfred, go sit with Gilbert."

After Alfred left, Francis walked over and sat down beside Arthur. "So... I'm assuming you had the talk," she said, glancing over at Arthur in concern.

"Yeah. I don't know what to do, Francis. I mean, I've always had more feelings for Columbia, but... I'm just confused," Arthur admitted, burying his face in his forearms.

"Give it time, _lapin_. Feelings don't fade overnight," Francis sighed, wrapping a gentle arm around Arthur's shoulders.

"You're probably right, as much as I don't want to admit it," Arthur answered, untangling himself from Francis' arm.

"You wound me, Arthur. Really. After all we've been through!" Francis gasped dramatically, clapping a hand to her heart in mock pain. Arthur snorted and gently smacked the empath's arm. He was about to say something back to the Frenchwoman when Professor Braginsky walked in looking incredibly happy.

"Oh dear. That's not good," Francis mumbled.

"Good news, class! We have a test tomorrow! I hope you've been studying!" Everyone groaned in response.

* * *

"Sorry I'm late! There was this mugger over on Main, and I stopped to help. Thanks for grabbing a table, though!" Alfred apologized as he ran in to the restaurant ten minutes late. Albion just sighed and smiled fondly up at him.

"It's fine. You did the right thing, Columbia. Regardless, please try to be on time next time?"

"I'll try. No promises, though. Do you know what you want?" Alfred asked, sitting down across from his boyfriend.

"Yes, I believe I do. Do you know what you'd like, Columbia?" Albion asked, closing his menu.

"Yeah. I'm getting a steak," Alfred answered, also closing the menu after he checked the price. Albion rolled his eyes while saying "Predictable."

After they ordered, Albion asked "Could I get your advice on something?"

"Oh, yeah, of course! What do you need help with, honey?" Alfred asked, smiling.

"So, I have a friend. He... has a crush on me, and I tried to let him down gently. He's started drifting away from me, though, because I told him that I'm in a relationship with someone else. I still want to be friends with him, but I don't know what to do," Albion explained, fidgeting in his seat. Alfred bit his lip. That sounded suspiciously like him and Arthur... but it probably wasn't. This kind of thing happened all the time!

"Wow. Okay. Honestly, I'm really bad with relationships. But... if I were you... I would confront your friend and ask him what's going on. Dancing around the problem won't solve anything," Alfred answered after thinking for a few minutes.

"That... actually helps quite a bit. Thank you, Columbia. You're the best boyfriend I could ever ask for," Albion giggled a bit. Alfred beamed.

"No prob, dude! Always happy to help!" Just as Albion opened his mouth to say something else, Alfred's cellphone started buzzing frantically. He pulled it out and checked the caller ID before answering.

"What do you need, Kitsune?" he asked, using Kiku's code name in order to keep his privacy.

"The Rogues are robbing a bank downtown. I know you're on a date, but Fjord and Charge are dealing with something on the other side of town," Kiku answered urgently. Alfred sighed before saying "We'll handle it". He hung up and turned to look at Albion, who was already fishing out his wallet.

"I'm assuming something is happening and they need us," Albion sighed as well, dropping a twenty on the table. Alfred dropped another twenty and stood up, following after Albion as they left.

"Yeah. Sorry our date's ruined."

"Nonsense, the city needs us more. We can always reschedule," Albion pointed out, preparing to transport them to the fight.

"True," Alfred conceded as he stepped into the swirl of magic. After only a few seconds, he found himself facing the Rogues in the middle of a bank. Everyone froze for a few seconds before Element formed a set of gleaming throwing knives in his hands. Alfred ducked as he released them before bringing his leg up to deliver a kick to Element's sides. Element dodged and grinned.

"Too slow, bitch!" he yelled before throwing more knives in Alfred's direction. A shield of green energy came up to block the knives, and Alfred glanced over to Albion.

"You're welcome!" Albion called before blasting Riptide into a wall.

"Guys! I got the money! Let's just go!" Trickshot yelled before leaping out a window, Gaea and Piper trailing closely behind. Riptide and Element lunged after them, and Viper paused before spinning around and calling out a flirty "Bye, sweetie!" to Albion. Alfred and Albion were left standing there, panting.

"Well... that could have gone better..." Alfred gasped out.

"Yeah, no kidding," Albion gritted out before straightening. "Nothing we can do about it now. I might as well finish up some homework. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yep. See you, Albion!" Alfred called before running towards his apartment. Thanks to his super speed, it only took four minutes. He detransformed outside of the building. Allen sighed at him.

"Oliver wants to meet up. I'll see you later, yeah?" Without another word, the spirit turned into a cat and left Alfred alone.

* * *

"This is getting ridiculous," Allen groaned, plopping down onto the bench next to the strawberry blonde. Oliver gave him a sympathetic look before wincing at Allen's bruises.

"What happened?" the Brit asked in concern.

"I was trying to protect Columbia and took the damage myself. I'll heal up within a day or so. But we really need to have a chat about Albion and Columbia and how stupid they are," the American answered.

"I know. I've been trying to get Albion to come out to Columbia, but he refuses. I'm beginning to wonder if..." Oliver trailed off, not wanting to explore that possibility further.

"Yeah. I get ya. I just hope these idiots can figure out their issues before something bad happens as a result," Allen finished, leaning over to rest his head on Oliver's shoulder.

"We can only hope for the best," Oliver agreed.

* * *

 **A/N: Aaaand... that's Chapter 1, people! I hope you like this! Updates will be MUCH slower on this story. I'm estimating once a month or so.**

 **Please let me know what you thought! Concrit is LOVED, flames are fed to my pet dragon. See you guys next chapter! ~Neah**


End file.
